---
OA_place: publisher
OA_type: diamond
_id: '19842'
abstract:
- lang: eng
  text: Given the uncertain evolutionary status of blue supergiant stars, their multiplicity
    properties hold vital clues to better understand their origin and evolution. As
    part of The Binarity at LOw Metallicity (BLOeM) campaign in the Small Magellanic
    Cloud, we present a multi-epoch spectroscopic survey of 128 supergiant stars of
    spectral type B5–F5, which roughly correspond to initial masses in the 6–30 M⊙
    range. The observed binary fraction for the B5–9 supergiants is 25 ± 6% (10 ±
    4%) and 5 ± 2% (0%) for the A–F stars, which were found using a radial-velocity
    (RV) variability threshold of 5 km s−1 (10 km s−1) as a criterion for binarity.
    Accounting for observational biases, we find an intrinsic multiplicity fraction
    of less than 18% for the B5–9 stars and 8−7+9% for the AF stars, for the orbital
    periods up to 103.5 days and mass ratios (q) in the 0.1 < q < 1 range. The large
    stellar radii of these supergiant stars prevent short orbital periods, but we
    demonstrate that this effect alone cannot explain our results. We assessed the
    spectra and RV time series of the detected binary systems and find that only a
    small fraction display convincing solutions. We conclude that the multiplicity
    fractions are compromised by intrinsic stellar variability, such that the true
    multiplicity fraction may be significantly smaller. Our main conclusions from
    comparing the multiplicity properties of the B5–9- and AF-type supergiants to
    that of their less evolved counterparts is that such stars cannot be explained
    by a direct evolution from the main sequence. Furthermore, by comparing their
    multiplicity properties to red supergiant stars, we conclude that the AF supergiant
    stars are neither progenitors nor descendants of red supergiants.
acknowledgement: 'We thank Sipra Hota for kindly sharing the SMC UVIT catalogue prior
  to publication. LRP, FN. and FT acknowledge support by grants PID2019-105552RB-C41
  and PID2022-137779OB-C41 funded by MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033 by “ERDF A way
  of making Europe”. LRP acknowledges support from grant PID2022-140483NB-C22 funded
  by MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033. TS acknowledges support by the Israel Science
  Foundation (ISF) under grant number 0603225041. The research leading to these results
  has received funding from the European Research Council (ERC) under the European
  Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme (grant agreement numbers
  772225: MULTIPLES). DMB gratefully acknowledges support from UK Research and Innovation
  (UKRI) in the form of a Frontier Research grant under the UK government’s ERC Horizon
  Europe funding guarantee (SYMPHONY; grant number: EP/Y031059/1), and a Royal Society
  University Research Fellowship (grant number: URF\R1\231631). GGT is supported by
  the German Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) under Project-ID 496854903 (SA4064/2-1,
  PI Sander). AACS is funded by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research
  Foundation) in the form of an Emmy Noether Research Group – Project-ID 445674056
  (SA4064/1-1, PI Sander). GGT and AACS further acknowledges support from the Federal
  Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) and the Baden-Württemberg Ministry of
  Science as part of the Excellence Strategy of the German Federal and State Governments.
  This paper benefited from discussions at the International Space Science Institute
  (ISSI) in Bern through ISSI International Team project 512 (Multiwavelength View
  on Massive Stars in the Era of Multimessenger Astronomy). DP acknowledges financial
  support by the Deutsches Zentrum für Luft und Raumfahrt (DLR) grant FKZ 50OR2005.
  JIV acknowledges support from the European Research Council for the ERC Advanced
  Grant 101054731. PAC is supported by the Science and Technology Facilities Council
  research grant ST/V000853/1 (PI. V. Dhillon). JSV is supported by Science and Technology
  Facilities Council funding under grant number ST/V000233/1. DFR is thankful for
  the support of the CAPES-Br and FAPERJ/DSC-10 (SEI-260003/001630/2023). This work
  has received funding from the European Research Council (ERC) under the European
  Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme (Grant agreement No. 945806)
  and is supported by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation)
  under Germany’s Excellence Strategy EXC 2181/1-390900948 (the Heidelberg STRUCTURES
  Excellence Cluster).'
article_number: A39
article_processing_charge: Yes
article_type: original
arxiv: 1
author:
- first_name: L. R.
  full_name: Patrick, L. R.
  last_name: Patrick
- first_name: D. J.
  full_name: Lennon, D. J.
  last_name: Lennon
- first_name: F.
  full_name: Najarro, F.
  last_name: Najarro
- first_name: T.
  full_name: Shenar, T.
  last_name: Shenar
- first_name: J.
  full_name: Bodensteiner, J.
  last_name: Bodensteiner
- first_name: H.
  full_name: Sana, H.
  last_name: Sana
- first_name: P. A.
  full_name: Crowther, P. A.
  last_name: Crowther
- first_name: N.
  full_name: Britavskiy, N.
  last_name: Britavskiy
- first_name: N.
  full_name: Langer, N.
  last_name: Langer
- first_name: A.
  full_name: Schootemeijer, A.
  last_name: Schootemeijer
- first_name: C. J.
  full_name: Evans, C. J.
  last_name: Evans
- first_name: L.
  full_name: Mahy, L.
  last_name: Mahy
- first_name: Ylva Louise Linsdotter
  full_name: Götberg, Ylva Louise Linsdotter
  id: d0648d0c-0f64-11ee-a2e0-dd0faa2e4f7d
  last_name: Götberg
  orcid: 0000-0002-6960-6911
- first_name: S. E.
  full_name: De Mink, S. E.
  last_name: De Mink
- first_name: F. R.N.
  full_name: Schneider, F. R.N.
  last_name: Schneider
- first_name: A. J.G.
  full_name: O’Grady, A. J.G.
  last_name: O’Grady
- first_name: J. I.
  full_name: Villaseñor, J. I.
  last_name: Villaseñor
- first_name: M.
  full_name: Bernini-Peron, M.
  last_name: Bernini-Peron
- first_name: D. M.
  full_name: Bowman, D. M.
  last_name: Bowman
- first_name: A.
  full_name: De Koter, A.
  last_name: De Koter
- first_name: K.
  full_name: Deshmukh, K.
  last_name: Deshmukh
- first_name: A.
  full_name: Gilkis, A.
  last_name: Gilkis
- first_name: G.
  full_name: González-Torà, G.
  last_name: González-Torà
- first_name: V. M.
  full_name: Kalari, V. M.
  last_name: Kalari
- first_name: Z.
  full_name: K̃Eszthelyi, Z.
  last_name: K̃Eszthelyi
- first_name: I.
  full_name: Mandel, I.
  last_name: Mandel
- first_name: A.
  full_name: Menon, A.
  last_name: Menon
- first_name: M.
  full_name: Moe, M.
  last_name: Moe
- first_name: L. M.
  full_name: Oskinova, L. M.
  last_name: Oskinova
- first_name: D.
  full_name: Pauli, D.
  last_name: Pauli
- first_name: M.
  full_name: Renzo, M.
  last_name: Renzo
- first_name: A. A.C.
  full_name: Sander, A. A.C.
  last_name: Sander
- first_name: K.
  full_name: Sen, K.
  last_name: Sen
- first_name: M.
  full_name: Stoop, M.
  last_name: Stoop
- first_name: J. T.
  full_name: Van Loon, J. T.
  last_name: Van Loon
- first_name: S.
  full_name: Toonen, S.
  last_name: Toonen
- first_name: F.
  full_name: Tramper, F.
  last_name: Tramper
- first_name: J. S.
  full_name: Vink, J. S.
  last_name: Vink
- first_name: C.
  full_name: Wang, C.
  last_name: Wang
citation:
  ama: 'Patrick LR, Lennon DJ, Najarro F, et al. Binarity at LOw Metallicity (BLOeM):
    The multiplicity properties and evolution of BAF-type supergiants. <i>Astronomy
    &#38; Astrophysics</i>. 2025;698. doi:<a href="https://doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361/202452949">10.1051/0004-6361/202452949</a>'
  apa: 'Patrick, L. R., Lennon, D. J., Najarro, F., Shenar, T., Bodensteiner, J.,
    Sana, H., … Wang, C. (2025). Binarity at LOw Metallicity (BLOeM): The multiplicity
    properties and evolution of BAF-type supergiants. <i>Astronomy &#38; Astrophysics</i>.
    EDP Sciences. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361/202452949">https://doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361/202452949</a>'
  chicago: 'Patrick, L. R., D. J. Lennon, F. Najarro, T. Shenar, J. Bodensteiner,
    H. Sana, P. A. Crowther, et al. “Binarity at LOw Metallicity (BLOeM): The Multiplicity
    Properties and Evolution of BAF-Type Supergiants.” <i>Astronomy &#38; Astrophysics</i>.
    EDP Sciences, 2025. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361/202452949">https://doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361/202452949</a>.'
  ieee: 'L. R. Patrick <i>et al.</i>, “Binarity at LOw Metallicity (BLOeM): The multiplicity
    properties and evolution of BAF-type supergiants,” <i>Astronomy &#38; Astrophysics</i>,
    vol. 698. EDP Sciences, 2025.'
  ista: 'Patrick LR, Lennon DJ, Najarro F, Shenar T, Bodensteiner J, Sana H, Crowther
    PA, Britavskiy N, Langer N, Schootemeijer A, Evans CJ, Mahy L, Götberg YLL, De
    Mink SE, Schneider FRN, O’Grady AJG, Villaseñor JI, Bernini-Peron M, Bowman DM,
    De Koter A, Deshmukh K, Gilkis A, González-Torà G, Kalari VM, K̃Eszthelyi Z, Mandel
    I, Menon A, Moe M, Oskinova LM, Pauli D, Renzo M, Sander AAC, Sen K, Stoop M,
    Van Loon JT, Toonen S, Tramper F, Vink JS, Wang C. 2025. Binarity at LOw Metallicity
    (BLOeM): The multiplicity properties and evolution of BAF-type supergiants. Astronomy
    &#38; Astrophysics. 698, A39.'
  mla: 'Patrick, L. R., et al. “Binarity at LOw Metallicity (BLOeM): The Multiplicity
    Properties and Evolution of BAF-Type Supergiants.” <i>Astronomy &#38; Astrophysics</i>,
    vol. 698, A39, EDP Sciences, 2025, doi:<a href="https://doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361/202452949">10.1051/0004-6361/202452949</a>.'
  short: L.R. Patrick, D.J. Lennon, F. Najarro, T. Shenar, J. Bodensteiner, H. Sana,
    P.A. Crowther, N. Britavskiy, N. Langer, A. Schootemeijer, C.J. Evans, L. Mahy,
    Y.L.L. Götberg, S.E. De Mink, F.R.N. Schneider, A.J.G. O’Grady, J.I. Villaseñor,
    M. Bernini-Peron, D.M. Bowman, A. De Koter, K. Deshmukh, A. Gilkis, G. González-Torà,
    V.M. Kalari, Z. K̃Eszthelyi, I. Mandel, A. Menon, M. Moe, L.M. Oskinova, D. Pauli,
    M. Renzo, A.A.C. Sander, K. Sen, M. Stoop, J.T. Van Loon, S. Toonen, F. Tramper,
    J.S. Vink, C. Wang, Astronomy &#38; Astrophysics 698 (2025).
date_created: 2025-06-15T22:01:29Z
date_published: 2025-06-01T00:00:00Z
date_updated: 2026-02-16T12:09:50Z
day: '01'
ddc:
- '520'
department:
- _id: YlGo
doi: 10.1051/0004-6361/202452949
external_id:
  arxiv:
  - '2502.02644'
  isi:
  - '001497903100028'
file:
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  creator: dernst
  date_created: 2025-06-23T07:09:38Z
  date_updated: 2025-06-23T07:09:38Z
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has_accepted_license: '1'
intvolume: '       698'
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language:
- iso: eng
month: '06'
oa: 1
oa_version: Published Version
publication: Astronomy & Astrophysics
publication_identifier:
  eissn:
  - 1432-0746
  issn:
  - 0004-6361
publication_status: published
publisher: EDP Sciences
quality_controlled: '1'
scopus_import: '1'
status: public
title: 'Binarity at LOw Metallicity (BLOeM): The multiplicity properties and evolution
  of BAF-type supergiants'
tmp:
  image: /images/cc_by.png
  legal_code_url: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode
  name: Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Public License (CC-BY 4.0)
  short: CC BY (4.0)
type: journal_article
user_id: 2DF688A6-F248-11E8-B48F-1D18A9856A87
volume: 698
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...